All Things Made New: Writings on the Reformation

by Diarmaid MacCulloch

A brilliant kaleidoscope on the Reformation from its leading scholar and 'one of the best historians writing in English today' (Sunday Telegraph)The Reformation which engulfed England and Europe in the sixteenth century was one of the most highly-charged, bloody and transformative periods in their history. Ever since, it has remained one of the most contested.Diarmaid MacCulloch is one of the leading British historians of this turbulent and endlessly fascinating era. Many essays in this volume expand upon his now classic Europe's House Divided, tracing, for example, the evolution of the English Prayer Book and Bible or reassessing the impact of the Reformation on Catholicism. Henry VIII and his archbishop, Thomas Cranmer, are both central presences, and MacCulloch swiftly dispatches some of the received wisdom about them. Throughout the book, he brilliantly undermines one persistent English tradition of interpreting the Reformation - that it never really happened - and establishes that Anglicanism was really a product of Charles II's Restoration in 1660 rather than the 'Elizabethan Settlement' of 1559. The inexhaustible variety of the Reformation is seen in a delightful mix of writings on angels, Protestant opinions about the Virgin Mary and such diverse personalities as William Byrd, John Calvin and the extraordinary seventeenth-century forger Robert Ware, some of whose malicious fantasies have polluted parts of Reformation history ever since.All Things Made New shows Diarmaid MacCulloch at his best - learned, far-seeing, sometimes subversive, and often witty. At the end of his essay on the great Elizabethan divine Richard Hooker, he writes 'The disputes which currently wrack Western Christianity are superficially about sexuality, social conduct or leadership at root, they are about what constitutes authority for Christians. The contest for the soul of the Church in the West rages around the question as to how a scripture claiming divine revelation relates to those other perennial sources of human revelation, personal and collective consciousness and memory; whether, indeed, there can be any relationship between the two.' There is much wisdom, as well as much enjoyment, in this book.

Genres: History, Religion, Nonfiction, Theology, Church History, Christianity, European History

441 pages, Kindle Edition

Published July 7, 2016

Reviews

[Clif Hostetler · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book is a collection of twenty-two essays on various aspects of the Reformation taken from a quarter century of the author's work. All these essays have been previously published in various journals and publications; some of them are book reviews and some are freestanding studies of particular topics. The author has previously written Reformation: Europe's House Divided 1490–1700 (2003) which serves as his definitive take on the subject. This book is more of series of spotlights on miscellaneous details which presumably weren't included in his history. The author is Anglican and unsurprisingly the English Reformation gets most of his attention in this book.

The following are my comments and selected quotations taken from the various chapters to serve as future reference to help me recall the chapter's contents. What I've written is better indication of things of interest to me than they are summaries of chapter contents.

Chapter 1, Christianity: The Bigger Picture
This chapter impressed me as a brief review of his book, Christianity: The First Three Thousand Years which I have previously reviewed at this link. This chapter serves as a reminder that the sixteenth century Reformation is a small segment of a much bigger story.

Chapter 2, Angels and the Reformation
Angels serve much the same purpose as Mary in the Roman Catholic Church by serving as an intermediary between humans and God. "Luther never lost his warm devotion either to Mary or angels; with characteristic energy, he took delight in remolding these feelings to bolster his deep Christocentricity. Calvin, preoccupied with the danger of idolatry, was sour about both Mary and angels, grudgingly unable to deny their place in God's purpose but unwilling to make undue fuss about it in case it gave people the wrong idea."

Chapter 3, The Virgin Mary and Protestant Reformers
The mainline reformers had ambiguous feelings about Mary. "On the one hand they saw it as a major work of piety to demolish and demystify the cultic and devotional world of which she was the centerpiece. On they other, they needed her as a bastion to defend ... against the more militant forces which the Reformation had unleashed. They wished her to play her part in the biblical narrative ... which they felt was threatened from the two opposed forces of papistry and radicalism."

Chapter 4, John Calvin
I was intrigued with the author's noting a similarity of Calvin (as an outsider) taking over the responsibility of determining the "correct" faith in Geneva to that of the radical militant anabaptist John of Leiden taking over Münster. Of course Calvin focused much of his writing efforts at showing how different he was from anything Anabaptist.

Chapter 5, The Council of Trent
I have always assumed that the purpose of the Council of Trent was to differentiate and protect the Catholic Church from Protestants. Since Luther made such a big deal about "grace," I assumed Trent would have been working up their view on the subject. It turns out that the big controversial issue discussed at Trent was "... whether or not bishops should reside in their dioceses or are entitled to be absentees. In fact the Council nearly imploded over this question of non-residence."

Chapter 6, The Italian Inquisition
I'll skip the gritty details of this subject to note that "...the enterprising publishers of Europe...looked eagerly to the latest edition of the Index and used it as a library-list for advertising their wares to good Protestants and not-so-good Catholics."

Chapter 7, Tudor Royal Image-Making
The nuisance that Parliament made of themselves is part of the reason royalty has survived so long in England. Oliver Cromwell was very successful in "...creating a single British Isles for the first time in the history of the Atlantic archipelago. The trouble was that his triumph was bought with the backing of a large army which most of the English detested, and no amount of spin would alter that."

Chapter 8, Henry VIII, pious king
Henry VIII thought very highly of himself and apparently had no problem with the fact that his theology changed over time. "What united the diverse strands of Henry's religious policy? Apparently it was Henry's conviction of his unique relationship with God as his anointed deputy on earth, a conviction strong enough to be shared by his devoted but not uncritical admirer Cranmer."

Chapter 9, Tolerant Cranmer?
It's interesting to note that Cranmer was more tolerant of Catholics than radical reformers (a.k.a. Anabaptists). It was understandable that Catholics would require some time to be persuaded to change from years of past teachings. On the other extreme, the radical reformers were beyond the pale and deserved no tolerance.

Chapter 10, The Making of the Prayer Book
The Church of England's Prayer Book "...was the literary text most thoroughly known by most people in this country..." from the sixteenth century to at least 1800.

Chapter 11, Tudor Queens Mary and Elizabeth
Back in those days a change in administration of the government was a matter of life and death for many government officials. "Both women started with success... But Elizabeth from the outset of her reign steadily built on advantage; Mary did not."

Chapter 12, William Byrd
William Byrd (1543–1623) was a musical composer and produced sacred music for Anglican services. Later in life he became a Roman Catholic. One interesting thing I learned from this chapter was that the reformers were headed toward doing away with fancy music and pipe organs in particular until Queen Elizabeth came along and saved them. Elizabeth loved vocal music, and thanks to her early support England has since contributed much to the world of sacred music.

Chapter 13, the Bible before King James
Tyndale's translation into English included the New Testament and parts of the Old Testament, but his work was cut short by being executed by the Holy Roman Emperor. The scholars completed the task with what came to be known as the Geneva Bible. Nine-tenths of the Authorized Version's New Testament (a.k.a. King James version) is the same as the same as Tyndale's.

Chapter 14, The King James Bible
One of the motivations of authorizing the King James version was the criticism of Catholic scholars who were finding errors in many of the early Protestant versions. The almost universal acceptance of the King James version by English speaking Protestants is a function of lucky timing thanks to James I being king of both Scotland and England. "...there are 257 instances of the KJB being the most likely candidate to have created a phrase in current use in English, although the total reduces to eighteen if we look austerely for exact phrases from the KJB with no know source earlier than the KJB. This figure of 257 is about three times that which can on similar principles be attributed to the works of Shakespeare, ..." The KJB translators used much of the work of William Tyndale "...except where (in accordance with the brief which King James gave them) they felt that it needed to sound more like the parish church than the alehouse."

Chapter 15, The Bay Psalm Book
The Bay Psalm Book was the first book printed in British North America. The book is a metrical Psalter, first printed in 1640 in Cambridge, Massachusetts. I thought the following was an interesting example in biblical translation of Psalm 23 in rhyme.

The Lord to mee a shepheard is
— want therefore shall not I.
Hee in the folds of tender-grasse
— doth cause mee downe to lie:
To waters calme me gently leads
— Restore my soule doth hee:
he doth in paths of righteousness
— for his names sake leade mee.

An original copy of the Bay Psalm Book sold for $14.2 million in 2013. (Only eleven known specimens still exist.)

Chapter 16, Putting the English Reformation on the Map
There are two competing worlds within the Church of England, "...one, the sacramental world of theologians ... that still values real presence, bishops and beauty; and the other the world of the Elizabethan Reformation, which rejects shrines and images, which rejects real presence, which values law and moral regulation based on both Old and New Testament precept."

Chapter 17, The Latitude of the Church of England
This is sort of a continuation of the previous chapter and explores the "theological latitude" within the Church of England. Reference was made to the "Oxford Movement." I had to look that one up. The chapter seems to be an account of history of push and pull in various directions. "Anglicanism has been asking question about latitude ever since; but perhaps it has been hiding from some of the answers."

Chapter 18, Modern Historians on the English Reformation
This chapter provides the author's overview of the state of historical scholarship of Reformation studies.

Chapter 19, Thomas Cranmer's Biographers
The author wrote his own biography of Thomas Cranmer published in 1996. Here he gives an overview of the various sources and biographies of Cranmer. Needless to say, the opinions of Thomas Cranmer vary widely from evil of saintly.

Chapter 20, Richard Hooker's Reputation
Richard Hooker (1554 – 1600) was an English priest in the Church of England and an influential theologian. His seven volume work that in the years since his death has sort of become the theology of the Church of England. Since Hooker strived to describe a center position and the fact that he wrote so much, it has been possible for both sides in the theological debates to quote Hooker to their advantage.

Chapter 21, Forging Reformation History: a cautionary tale
This chapter is about Robert Ware of Dublin (1639-97) who created a number of forgeries of historical documents that entered in the written histories of the Church of England. His invented documents misled historians of the Protestant Reformation for centuries afterwards. Finally, the forgeries were exposed in 1890, but it was not until the 20th century that historians were able to sort out the damage done. One of interesting things about him is that he was creative in the fictional stories he created. Some of his stories were so improbable that it appears the he was tempting fate to see how much he could get away with.

Chapter 22, And Finally: the nature of Anglicanism
"Journalist love to write about the crisis of Anglicanism over women and gays, ... Headline-writers don't seem to realize the Anglican crisis began in 1533, and has not stopped since. That is why it is so satisfying to be an Anglican. Anglicanism is a trial-and-error form of Christianity; it has made mistakes in the past (losing the Dissenters and the Methodists being two of the worst, not to mention killing Roman Catholics), and it can feel honestly rueful about them. Anglicanism is an approach to God which acknowledges that He is often good at remaining silent and provoking more questions than answers. Anglicans are not afraid to argue in public."

The following is a link to some quotations from this book:
https://www.goodreads.com/work/quotes...

[Rachel · Rating 4 out of 5]

For a busy reader with some (but not very much) prior knowledge of the Reformation this book was a delight. It is a collection of essays, book reviews etc which allows the reader to come refreshed to each new item and makes it easy to pick up and put down without losing the thread, particularly useful if life intervenes. As a non-historian I found the sections which cover the various perspectives and 'slants' put on people and events through subsequent history very interesting. MacCulloch's style is engaging as always. Altogether a good read.

[Vance J. · Rating 3 out of 5]

I learned much, and I am confident that the author is a master of what he writes. If you’re looking for a collection of essays that cover:
1. The Reformation in the British Isles from roughly mid-1500s to mid-1600s.
2. Told primarily through the books that were written in that era, and how those books came to be.
3. Featuring a cast of characters that would make Tolstoy wince.

This is THE book for you. 👍

[Kris]

DNF. No rating. Read the introduction and the first three chapters. This is not the book on the Reformation that I want. Too random, too much ranting, and too much opinion. For a man who was/is an Anglican, MacCulloch sure seems to sneer at Christianity.

This review seems helpful: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

[Joe · Rating 4 out of 5]

A stimulating collection of essays—not all “fit” perfectly together in a single volume, but those that focus on the English Reformation certainly hang together nicely. MacCulloch is known for reminding us that England really did have a Reformation and that there was really a Reformed church under Edward (obviously) and Elizabeth (still obvious, but not quite as much). No 19th via media distortions here. Nevertheless, another theme emerges slowly but significantly throughout these essays: the preservation of “the beauty of holiness” in Elizabethan cathedrals (as well as in Westminster and the Royal Chapter). Here, through the choral tradition and the cathedral close, etc. a sacramental and ceremonialist sensibility was preserved and nurtured (eg Lancelot Andrewes). MacCulloch indicates tantalizingly that this is the root of that well-known Catholic strand of Anglicanism.

[Johanne · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a collection of essays on various aspects of the (English) Reformation and all these essays have been previously published in as book reviews or essay on specific aspects. MacCulloch as a gay, ordained C of E Deacon and Professor of the History of the Church at Oxford has lots to say on the Reformation - (see his big, fat but fascinating book "Reformation: Europe's House Divided"). The articles are scholarly but accessible and leavened with a dry wit.

[Barbara James · Rating 5 out of 5]

MacCulloch is an Anglican deacon and scholar with an expertise in church history.

In honor of Reformation Day (October 31), I began reading the book. I imagined I'd finish by the end of the month, but I was surprised I was done on November 12.

It's an accessible read, insofar as I was able to read a chapter per day. But in other ways, it's not as accessible to the reader who isn't as familiar with the debates within Reformation church history.

He's writing for the reader who has a strong foundation in the literature of the field and a strong grounding in the intellectual history of the Reformation, especially of the personalities at play. So his discussion goes beyond the mere discussion of the development of the Reformation, but its legacy in scholarship.

I liked the book insofar as it exposed me to earlier debates whose results I had been noticing recently. How do Anglicans and Episcopalians view the Reformation? What have been the stakes at play insofar as how the Reformation is defined and described? What challenges have arisen from the competing perspectives?

I also liked that I became inspired to read and learn more.

[Nick · Rating 3 out of 5]

Diarmaid MacCulloch’s All Things Made New (2016) is a curious beast—not a straightforward history of the Reformation but a collection of essays that dive into its nooks and crannies, with a heavy tilt toward Anglicanism’s peculiar evolution. As a scholar of the Reformation, MacCulloch’s erudition is undeniable, but his liberal, almost postmodern lens shapes this work into something more akin to a treatise on fluid, self-defined Anglican identity than a balanced historical survey. While the book offers sharp insights and a fresh, forensic reading of Richard Hooker that explodes 19th-century myths, readers must approach it with eyes wide open to its biases—and its missed opportunity to move from historian to affirmative apologist.

The introduction sets a bold tone, framing the Reformation not as a return to early church purity but as an unintended revolutionary spark that birthed the Enlightenment’s love of individual doubt. MacCulloch is openly critical of conservatives who cling to scriptural inerrancy or the notion of one true church, favoring instead the Enlightenment’s rationalism, which he credits for triumphs like abolitionism. This feels like a smug oversimplification, ignoring the deep biblical convictions of figures like Wilberforce. His take on Orthodoxy’s lack of Reformation or Enlightenment—blamed on historical pressures like Ottoman rule or, oddly, Putin’s influence—implies they’re lagging behind the West’s progressive arc. Yet, as he concedes but frames negatively, the Orthodox may not have needed a Reformation, having preserved early church traditions without Rome’s centralized grip.

The book’s structure—essays on topics like angels, Marian devotion, and the English Reformation—avoids a linear narrative, prioritizing specific figures and themes over a cohesive story. The continental Reformation gets a brisk 84 pages (Wittenberg, Zurich, Geneva, Trent), mostly to highlight struggles with Anabaptism and Romanism, tolerating extra-biblical elements like the Trinity or Mary’s virginity as acceptable descriptions. These synthesize into the Elizabethan Articles’ flexibility (6, 20, 21): only doctrines necessary for salvation, derived from scripture, are required; councils may err. MacCulloch doesn’t spell this out as a “limited infallibility,” but it’s the hinge—to be Anglican is to affirm the essentials and respect tradition without being shackled to it.

The English reformation chapters, the bulk of the book, retread gaps from MacCulloch’s earlier works (The Boy King Edward, Cranmer), stressing Tyndale’s Lollard-influenced continuity (90% of the KJV) and Cranmer’s Eucharistic evolution from Lutheran caution to full Reformed clarity. The Prayer Book’s volatility—1549 sparking rebellion, 1552 radical, 1662 a post-war imposition—underscores contention until Restoration conformity. The real payload is the longest, most original chapter on Thomas Hooker. In his day a mainstream Reformed Anglican, Hooker defended episcopacy as Erastian governance, not jure divino; downplayed predestination; and sourced political authority in the multitude (contractarian, Romans 13 as general grant). His natural law hierarchy (scripture > reason > tradition) offends three-legged-stool myths. Unfinished and turgid, Ecclesiastical Polity became cherry-pickable—Whigs for consent, Laudians for hierarchy, Tractarians for “judicious” moderation. MacCulloch’s thesis: the via media wasn’t Catholic-Protestant synthesis but dynamic wrangling within Reformed ranks, spawning sects (Methodism, Baptists, Quakers). “Anglicanism” itself was a 17th-century slur, crystallized in the 19th via Laudian/Jacobite/Oxford revisionism that obscured Erastian, scripture-first roots.

MacCulloch mourns the eviction of evangelicals/Methodists (Catholics less so, given their revisionist heft) as truncating pluralism, but never delivers the affirmative manifesto his intro/conclusion tease. He shows the scaffolding—Chalcedon as contingency, Calvin as “fifth doctor”—then walks away. The effect dismantles the “three creeds, four councils, via media” package into historical accident, leaving a method, not monument: scripture alone binds, order pragmatic, conscience free.

Since publication, global fractures worsen: Canterbury’s humanist ecumenism (inspiring/balking progressives) forges GAFCON/ACNA’s confessional retrenchment. Both are post-Hooker accomodations—amounting to “Orthodoxy-lite” or “Episcopal Calvinism” freezing at 1662/1552 snapshots. MacCulloch’s fluid Anglicanism aligns with Canterbury’s drift but seems disconnected from the Global South’s growth, underestimating traditional resilience in non-Western modernity.

All Things Made New is capable, provocative scholarship—rich in detail, witty in myth-busting—but no neutral history. It’s a love letter to a liberal, argumentative Anglicanism that may not survive the Communion’s divides. MacCulloch hands you a wrecking ball and dares rebuild, yet refuses to preach the blueprint.

[Carl · Rating 4 out of 5]

"The proper study of history has a purpose, indeed (to be portentous), a moral purpose: it forms a powerful barrier against societies and institutions collectively going insane as a result of telling themselves badly skewed stories about the past."


An enjoyable read from an illustrious historian who clearly knows his scholarship well. The key theme that emerged seems to be that the English Reformation was very much Reformed, red in tooth and claw, and not all that separate an affair from the Reformations which happened in the "Continent". In this sense he is critical of the "skewed stories" that Anglicans like to tell themselves (even the term "Anglican" has a rather late origin, being used once in the 1590s and then only came into common usage from the 1830s). Perhaps it speaks more broadly as well to the "island mentality" of our great and often confused nation. "Anglicanism is a product of the Reformation, though a peculiar one".

I found it quite hard work. The chapters are largely based on papers he's written or presented, and are frequently critiquing secondary literature. The book has a very scholarly feel which at times made it feel less accessible. I was also quite confused by how disparate the chapters are, where after introducing Christianity he discusses angles and the virgin Mary. It isn't a book that tells the chronological history of the Reformation, and he seems to assume prior knowledge of the key events and people involved (Henry VIII, Cranmer, Cromwell, Luther, Calvin, Hooker, Zwingli, Bullinger etc). A reader such as myself would've appreciated more of an introduction to these people, but you can probably quite easily look up the basics yourself if you aren't aware (it is a bit more work on the reader's part).

However, when he got onto the English Reformation I was able to more clearly see what this initially disparate collection of articles was achieving. He really does tell a sweeping story of the Reformation, engages well with the misunderstandings that have plagued it in the past (particularly the violence that the Oxford movement did to the history of the English Reformation). At times quite witty,

He ends with some deeper reflections on the unique nature of Anglicanism. With its contradictions, pitfalls and blunders embedded in its history, Anglicans are probably the best people to recognise how "the past mocks our dogmatism and asks us to think again".

Overall, highly recommended; challenging, engaging, thought-provoking, and well written, but probably not the first book you should read about the Reformation.

[Nicholas Whyte · Rating 5 out of 5]

https://fromtheheartofeurope.eu/all-things-made-new-by-diarmaid-macculloch/

I hugely enjoyed MacCulloch’s massive History of Christianity when I read it in 2012; this is a shorter collection of essays on different aspects of the Reformation. I found most of it very interesting, though I must admit I had not heard of Richard Hooker and am little the wiser now. But in general, it’s a set of please for English Reformation history to be understood as a specifically English historical experience, but also one that was linked to developments on the European continent and which also had reverberations in America. (I wish there had been more on Scotland and Ireland, or indeed Wales, but this is a collection of pieces mainly published elsewhere so it’s unreasonable to expect global coverage.)

MacCulloch comes back to the question of English religious texts several times, and explains why on the one hand the King James Version (and he unpacks that name) is used for most of the Anglican services, but on the other the Psalms are generally Myles Coverdale’s version. There’s also an interesting short piece on the Bay Psalm Book, the first book in English known to have been published in America (in Boston, in 1640). I like that sort of thing myself, though of course we have to be aware that we tend to focus on the artefacts that survive from history which can lead to a lack of perspective on less tangible things.

[Jason Wilson · Rating 3 out of 5]

Both for beginners, this follows on from Machullochs reformation history to offer sidelights, home in on points and analyse more obscure figures and points - it's interesting but a bit of a jumble and feels unfocused . Also, the author seems to place the legacy of the Reformation squarely within Anglicanism and the. Counter reformed Catholicism . Other denominations don't get a look in . The essay format gives room for a more opinionated look - while I prefer facts , he is witty and telling at times , irritating at others .

[Avril · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fascinating collection of pieces. And on the second-last page, this gem: ”Journalists love to write about the crisis of Anglicanism over women and gays, for it makes a great headline. ‘NOT ALL THAT MANY GO OVER TO ROME’ or ‘EVANGELICALS END UP NOT MAKING QUITE SUCH A FUSS AS THEY HAD PLANNED’ don’t pack a punch in big type.” Love it!

[Yeongbae K · Rating 1 out of 5]

The author is one of my favorites. I enjoyed reading his books about the Reformation and the history of Christianity.

I looked forward to learning more about the Reformation(s). This is why I bought the book. Overall, the writing and the topics presented were mediocre. I kept reading in the hope that something interesting would come.

I do not recommend the book.

[Elisabeth Marksteiner · Rating 5 out of 5]

A collection of essays, reviews, all thoughful and written in Dairmuid MacCulloch’s wonderfully accessible though undoubtedly comprehensively learned style. No dry historiography, but absolutely fascinating. Marvellous.

[Ephrem Arcement · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a collection of essays with special emphasis on the English Reformation. All are compelling, but a may be a bit too specialized for the general reader. As usual, MacCulloch gives a very honest, objective and fair assessment.

[Michael Macdonald · Rating 4 out of 5]

hard going at times, McVulloch explores the naure of Anglicanism. He shows how a diverse, reltively non-dogmatic religion arose in England that is flexible and adapys to change. Inspiring

[T B · Rating 1 out of 5]

I gave up on this book after 25 pages. He mixes his opinions into the text of history and I started arguing with the opinions so I gave up.

[Scott · Rating 5 out of 5]

A rewarding read

If at times a little tedious, the book never failed to be rewarding with insight and wit. If you have enjoyed MacCulloch's writing you will enjoy these essays.

[Sixo Cooper · Rating 4 out of 5]

Foundational reformation history reading!

[Martinus Eleets · Rating 5 out of 5]

A delightful, sumptuous and engaging collection of essays. An excellent bibliography with great footnotes. A must read for any student of Reformation studies.

[Luke · Rating 3 out of 5]

I don't know what is the bigger surprise. That it was published or that somehow I got a copy of it.

[Br. Thanasi (Thomas) Stama · Rating 5 out of 5]

If ever there is a book (other than Holy Scripture) Episcopalians and others in the Anglican Communion should read it is this one!

[Andrea Engle · Rating 5 out of 5]

An eclectic collection of essays concerning the Protestant Reformation (mainly the English version of it) and its impact on all subsequent history ... illuminating ...

[Christy · Rating 5 out of 5]

A couple of useful essays for anyone interested in the history of the Church of England and Anglican identity.

[Toby · Rating 4 out of 5]

It is 20 years since MacCulloch's ground-breaking biography of Thomas Cranmer and he has not been idle since, with significant, not to see massive, books on the Reformation and the history of Christianity. A selection of his writings and reviews on all things Reformation therefore seems timely, if not overdue.

This is, for the most part, an excellent volume which combines scholarship, humility and a good deal of wit. The first two parts are thoroughly entertaining and enlightening. I knew nothing of the Bay Psalter (trivia: the first book published in America) beforehand and there were many other essays which refreshed the old and taught the new.

The third part, the historiography of the Reformation is for a more specialised interest and most readers will lose nothing if they skip this section. The essay on the great Reformation forgery - namely Cranmer's supposed Josiah sermon at Edward VI's coronation, whilst over-lengthy, was at least fascinating in showing how even modern critical scholars like MacCulloch can be duped ("its authenticity does not seem in doubt" states a footnote in the Cranmer biography).

A book that should be read by anyone interested in the history of the English Reformation.

[Timothy Hoff · Rating 5 out of 5]

Diarmaid MacCulloch Revisited

Published September 2016, this is a collection of essays and reviews that have been published separately. Here is MacCulloch at his best: erudition softened by wit and an appreciation of the theological enterprise as necessary, yet always inadequate, frequently corrupt, and sometimes deadly.

[David Potter · Rating 2 out of 5]

Heavy scholarship

Yet again the cover blurb misled me. This is a book of scholarship about aspects of the Reformation intended for other scholars of that important period in our history. And like most such books, to those who are merely interested in the topic in question, it is 'heavy lifting' to read, dull even.

[Adam · Rating 4 out of 5]

An interesting collection of essays on the Reformation, with a primary focus on England. They vary widely in length, focus, and tone. I found it fascinating to see what a top-notch historian thinks of the debates that shaped and continue to shape our prayer and worship.

[Jack · Rating 4 out of 5]

Intriguing, involving and accessible. MacCulloch writes in such an engaging way he makes his subject come alive with passion and fascinating detail.

[Steve · Rating 3 out of 5]

A bit niche - some good early stuff on the Reformation, especially as it happened in England. But it gets a bit bogged down in essays about Hooker and those who came after. It has some sharp insights, but maybe more a book to selectively dip into than read cover to cover.